Rememberies: 2012

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2012 saw 40 public appearances by Slushy, our first tape, lots of recording, our first tours and plenty of good times. Let’s see how the months flew by:

Slushy on Tour

January

Right after the New Year, we started working on a super cool project with Doug from the Sleepovers and Shimby from Empty Bottle Presents. Most of what we recorded remains unheard, but interested parties are welcome to contact us for more info.

February

More recording, plus we played with Woollen Kits from Melbourne, Aus. They’re nice. Their new record out on Trouble in Mind is definitely worth picking up.

March

Chris moved into a new apartment that became our rehearsal/recording space, then the very next day we hit the road for SXSW!!! Perfect rock and roll vacation. So many awesome shows, so many cool bands. Plus hanging with Nathan J. and Jenn R. Then we came back and played some shows around town that were great (Sonic Angels, TRMRS, etc).

April

We played with Organs, from Brooklyn, at Subterranean and completely had a great time. We got pretty much the entire audience up on the stage. If you weren’t at that show, you missed one of the best Slushy shows of the year. If you were at that show, thanks for jumping on the stage and helping us sing and play guitar solos. We also played a show with Twin Peaks in a garage, featuring Doug on drums.

May

Chris turned 30 and we played a record store the next day and a restaurant a few days after which was the wildest string of days in a row possible. Lots of blood.

June

Two of the coolest shows imaginable two days in a row. Like a little Chicago tour. Bassdrum of Death / DZ DeathRays and Crocodiles / Devin. (actually all of those bands are lousy and the shows were just so-so.) Plus we were doing lots of leg work trying to get our August tour together. The Manic Static Mix Tape came out featuring Slushy and lots of our best buds.

July

At this point we were in full SLUSHY mode. Over the fourth of July weekend, we wrote, recorded, mixed and set up a release for our 8 song debut cassette tape release, ALL THE RAD DUDES, on Manic Static. We played several fantastic shows, appeared on Chic-A-Go-Go singing “Candy” with our buddy Max, got tattooed at Cobra Lounge with King Tuff, got some write-em-ups from RAD DUDES, recorded a couple of songs with Nathan from Thee Yolks, and basically had the summer every 14 year old dreams about.

August

Still hustling, still balling. Played the legendary Fireside Bowl, then had our tour kick-off at the Burlington and didn’t look back. The tour was a breeze (although I never had time to write a daily recap) and we played with so many cool bands and met so many cool people. Jasona Beach! Pickle Backs! BATMAN! Sideways Rain! Eeries! Special thanks to Jerome and the Psychics for setting up our final show of tour at their house that they didn’t even get to play.

September

Played a show at the Whip and then were like “Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuudge” and took a big nap.

October

Even more taking a break! Did you know that Brent plays bass in Party Bat? And that Chris plays in The Lemons? And they both had relatively busy Octobers? Check them out when you get around to it!

November

We made our triumphant return to the Burlington. But it was not a typical Slushy show! Somewhere along the line, Chris acquired a Farfisa Mini-Compact, so we did a show with a special line up built around that. And built around mostly new songs. People described it as “interesting” and “too much mid-tro”. It stunk.

December

We’re done dicking around. Our 40th show of the year, and 81st as a band, saw us back in Indianapolis with four bands so sick they’re contagious. Vacation Club! Burnt Ones! Apache Droupout! The Gizmos! This was the real deal, the most fun I’ve had at a show in ages, and the perfect way to send off 2012. Thanks, Jimmy!

Predictions for 2013

Well, it seems like the same predictions I made last year are on deck for this year. We did record music as I’d hoped, and some of it did see the light of day (RAD DUDES!). We did experiment with augmented line ups, but the two-piece was the move. The subject came up again the other day. We’re much more comfortable as a two-piece now than we were this time last year, so who knows how it’ll play out. We’ll hopefully continue to be allowed to play shows in and out of Chicago, but I’d like to see out-of-town shows more scattered throughout the calendar. As I say every year, “Your Guess Is As Good As Mine.”